Conviction

Starred review from January 30, 2017
In Dahl’s outstanding third novel featuring Brooklyn freelance reporter Rebekah Roberts (after 2015’s Run You Down), Rebekah agrees to help DeShawn Perkins, who claims he’s innocent of the crime that sent him to prison at age 16—murdering his foster parents and foster sister in 1992. DeShawn claims that a cop, who unquestioningly accepted a crack addict’s ID of him, coerced his confession. The narrative alternates between the original murder investigation in Crown Heights, where riots pitted Orthodox Jews and black residents against each other, and Rebekah’s present-day sleuthing in the quickly gentrifying neighborhood. Many of the case’s original players are still out there, including Rebekah’s formerly Orthodox ex-cop friend, Saul Katz; the woman in line to be the next Brooklyn DA; and the highly dubious eyewitness, all of whom have something to fear from Rebekah’s probing. Dahl excels at revealing the inner workings of enigmatic subcultures while maintaining peak suspense. She also provides a terrific “whoa, I didn’t see that coming” moment. Agent: Stephanie Rostan, Levine Greenberg Literary Agency.